Mobile device retention and charging tray

ABSTRACT

A console assembly for an automotive vehicle and use with a mobile device. The console assembly including a storage compartment having a floor, a pair of sidewalls, and a pair of end walls. An opening permits access into the storage area and a slidable top wall is operable to move between a covered position and a retracted position relative to the opening. An anti-slip surface is provided on the top wall and configured to receive the mobile device thereon. A wireless charging unit is also incorporated into and moveable with the top wall. The wireless charging unit is located immediately below the anti-slip surface. When the mobile device is placed on the anti-slip surface, the device is moveable with the top wall, between the covered position and retracted position, while being charged.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to automotive interiors. Morespecifically, the invention relates to the wireless charging of portableelectronic devices in automotive vehicles.

2. Description of Related Art

The occupant compartment of an automotive vehicle is often provided withvarious compartments for the storage of items during driving of thevehicle. The most well-known of these compartments is the glovebox. Morerecently, console assemblies have been provided in vehicles wherein theconsole assembly includes a lid that is hinged at one end and raise soas to permit access into the storage area defined within the consoleassembly. With the above two compartments, the console lid or gloveboxdoor allows for any articles placed therein to be concealed from viewfrom outside of the vehicle. Alternatively, various open topped bins ortrays have been provided within vehicles to allow for the placement ofan article therein without concealing the article.

Increasingly, the occupants of an automotive vehicle rely upon mobiledevices in their everyday lives. These devices include, most notably,the mobile phone. Mobile phones are generally placed within open bins ortrays while the vehicle is being operated and when the device is not inuse. One inconvenience of placing a mobile device in these trays or binsis that the device often moves around during operation of the vehicle,possibly resulting in wear and damage to the housing of the device, ormore undesirably, the display screen of the device.

Additionally, many of today's mobile devices have relatively largedisplay screens enabling the display screen to be viewed when anactivity occurs (such as an incoming telephone call) and allowing thedevice's owner to make a decision on how to respond to the activity(such as answering the incoming telephone call). Unfortunately, thepermitted movement of the mobile device during operation of the vehicleoften results in in the display screen of the device not being properlyoriented with respect to the device owner for viewing when an activityoccurs.

An additional limitation with mobile devices is that they rely uponbattery power. Thus, it often occurs during travel of long duration thatthe mobile device loses its charge or decreases discharged to a pointwhere it must be immediately recharged upon reaching the vehicleoccupant's destination. Obviously, this may be very intermediate to theoccupants and may not be immediately possible.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, in one aspect a console assembly is provided for anautomotive vehicle and use with a mobile device. The console assemblyincludes a storage compartment having a storage area defined by a floor,a pair of sidewalls, and a pair of end walls. The storage compartmenthas an opening permitting access in the storage area. The storagecompartment also has a slidable top wall that is operable to be slidbetween a covered position and a retracted position relative to theopening. When in the covered position, the top wall is in a positioncovering opening and, when in the retracted position, the top wall is ina position permitting access into the storage area through the opening.An anti-slip surface is provided on the top wall and configured toreceive the mobile device thereon. Also, a wireless charging unit isincorporated into and moveable with the top wall, with the wirelesscharging unit being located immediately below the anti-slip surfacewhereby the mobile device is charged when placed on the anti-slipsurface and is moveable with the top wall between the covered positionand retracted position while being charged.

In another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein the wirelesscharging unit includes a primary coil for inductively providing power tothe mobile device, the wireless charging unit further including a powersupply circuit coupled to the primary coil.

In a further aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein theanti-slip surface is flat and defines less than all of a top surface ofthe top wall.

In an additional aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein theanti-slip surface is bounded by a curved surface defining furtherportions of the top surface of the top wall.

In yet another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein the curvedsurface circumscribes the anti-slip surface.

In still a further aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein theanti-slip surface is elevated in height relative to immediately adjacentportions of the curved surface.

In another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein the curvedsurface is formed of a different material than material forming theanti-slip surface.

In a further aspect, a console assembly is provided with a receivingslot, the receiving slot being defined by a pair of second sidewalls anda second top wall generally extending between the second sidewalls, thetop wall of the storage compartment defining a bottom wall of thereceiving slot when in the retracted position, the anti-slip surface ofthe top wall of the storage compartment being spaced apart from thesecond top wall so as to define a receiving space whereby the mobiledevice can be retained on the anti-slip surface as the top wall is movedbetween the closed position and the retracted positions.

In still another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein thereceiving space has a height of at least 0.5 inches.

In yet another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein theanti-slip surface is inclined relative to horizontal.

In further aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein the wirelesscharging unit defines a charging spot on the support surface.

In as still further aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein thecharging spot is defined off-center relative to the top wall.

In an additional aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein thecharging spot is defined off-center relative to the anti-slip surface.

In another aspect, a console assembly for an automotive vehicle and usewith a mobile device is provided. The console assembly comprises: astorage compartment having a floor, a pair of sidewalls, and a pair ofend walls defining a storage area within the storage compartment, thestorage compartment also including a slidable tray operable to be slidbetween a covered position and a retracted position, wherein in thecovered position the tray is in a position covering an upwardly orientedopening of the storage compartment and in the retracted position thetray is in a position permitting access into the storage compartmentthrough the opening; an anti-slip surface configured to receive theportable electronic device thereon, the anti-slip surface being flat andbeing at least partially surrounded by an bounding surface, theanti-slip surface and the bounding surface forming portions of a topsurface of the tray, the anti-slip surface further having a raisedheight relative to immediately adjacent portions of the boundingsurface; and a wireless charging unit incorporated into and moveablewith the tray, the wireless charging unit defining a charging spot onthe anti-slip surface whereby the portable electronic device is chargedwhen placed on the charging spot and is moveable with the top wallbetween the covered position and retracted position while being charged.

In another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein the boundingsurface completely circumscribes the anti-slip surface.

In a further aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein portions ofthe bounding surface are curved to a height relative to the anti-slipsurface that is greater than the height of the anti-slip surface.

In an additional aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein thecharging spot is located off-center in the tray.

In still another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein thewireless charging unit includes a primary coil incorporated into thetray for inductively providing power to the mobile device, the wirelesscharging unit further including a power supply circuit coupled to theprimary coil.

In yet another aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein thecharging spot is defined by the primary coil.

In a still further aspect, a console assembly is provided wherein theanti-slip surface and the bounding surface are formed of materialshaving different coefficients of friction.

Further objects, features and advantages of this invention will becomereadily apparent to persons skilled in the art after a review of thefollowing description, with reference to the drawings and claims thatare appended to and form a part of this specification.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a center console in automobile andhaving a slidable support in accordance with the principles of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of the centerconsole, including the slidable support, seen in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view similar that seen in FIG. 2 andfurther illustrating a portable electronic device, such as a mobiletelephone, positioned on the slidable support;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view, similar to that seen in FIG. 3,with the slidable support located in a retracted position:

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the slidable support seen in FIGS. 2-4;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view generally taken along line 6-6 in FIG.5; and

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view generally taken along line 7-7 in FIG.5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings, a console assembly embodying theprinciples of the present invention is illustrated therein anddesignated at 10. The console assembly 10 is part of a center console12, a console that is centrally located in the cabin of the vehicle. Asseen in FIG. 1, the center console 12 extends longitudinally relative tothe vehicle, and the console assembly 10 itself is positioned at theforward end of the center console 12, such that is located at leastpartially beneath the instrument panel 14. As will be apparent from thedescription which follows, the console assembly 10 could be formed as aseparate component from the center console 12 or could be formed as partof the instrument panel 14. Additionally, the center assembly 10 couldbe positioned so as to be wholly beneath the instrument panel 14 orcompletely apart therefrom.

As used herein, directional indications such as forward, rearward,upward and downward are to be interpreted relative to an automotivevehicle. Accordingly, the forward direction refers to a direction towardthe front end of the vehicle. Rearward, upward and downward directionsare thus similarly defined as directions toward the rear, top andbottom, respectively, of the vehicle.

As its primary components, the console assembly 10 includes a storagecompartment 16 and a slidable top wall or tray 18. The tray 18 isoperable to be slid between a covered position and a retracted positionrelative to an opening in the storage compartment 16, the opening beingone that permits access into a storage area 20 of the compartment 16. Asseen in FIG. 2, the console assembly 10 is shown with the tray 18 in thecovered position, whereby access to the storage area 20 is prevented. Asseen in FIG. 4, the tray 18 has been moved to the retracted position andaccess into the storage area 20 of the storage compartment 16 ispermitted.

The storage compartment 16 includes a floor 22, a pair of opposedsidewalls 24, and a pair of opposed end walls 26 that cooperativelydefine the storage area 20 therebetween. In the illustrated embodiment,the storage compartment 16 therefore includes an upwardly orientedopening 28, through which access into the storage area 20 is gained.

In one of the walls of the storage compartment 16, the storagecompartment 16 is preferably provided with at least one connection port30. As seen in FIG. 4, the front end wall 26′ includes two connectionports 30. In this embodiment, one of the connection port 30′ isconfigured as a USB port, while the other connection port 30″ isconfigured as a 12 V power outlet. The connection ports 30 may beconfigured to provide power to a mobile device, such as, withoutlimitation, a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tabletcomputer, an electronic reader (e-reader) or other handheld electronicdevice. Alternatively, the connection ports 30 may allow forcommunication between the mobile device and one or more of the systemsof the vehicle, such as the vehicle's entertainment, navigation orcommunication systems.

As previously noted, the tray 18 is constructed such that it is movablebetween its closed and retracted positions. In its closed position, thetray 18 is positioned such that it completely extends over the opening28 of the storage compartment 16. In the illustrated embodiment of FIGS.2-4, the closed position is the position where the tray 18 has beenextended or moved to its rearward most extent. When fully moved into itsretracted position, the tray 18 is at its forward most extent, and theopening 28 of the storage compartment 16 is maximally exposed.

As seen in FIG. 4, when the tray 18 is in its retracted position, thetray 18 has been forwardly slid into a receiving slot 32 that isadjacent to the storage compartment 16. The receiving slot 32 may beformed as part of the console assembly 10 or, alternatively, eitherwholly or in part by a lower portion of the instrument panel 14.Regardless of the construction, the receiving slot 32 includes at leasta pair of opposed sidewalls 34 with an upper wall 36 extendingtherebetween. The upper wall 36 is located such that the lowermostsurface of the upper wall 36 is spaced apart from the upper surface ofthe tray 18, thereby providing sufficient clearance to allow the tray 18to be moved into the receiving slot 32 without necessitating that amobile device would need to be removed from the upper surface of thetray 18. In this regard, the lowermost surface of the upper wall 36 ispreferably at least 0.5 inches, and more preferably at least 1.0 inches,above the upper surface of the tray 18.

In order to facilitate the sliding movement of the tray 18 relative tothe remainder of the console assembly 10, the tray 18 includes siderails or runners 38 that reside and move within rail slots 40. In thisregard, the rail slots 40 may be provided in the upper regions of thesidewalls 24 of the storage compartment 16. As one skilled in the artwill appreciate, various alternative mechanisms could be used tofacilitate this movement of the tray 18.

The upper surface of the tray 18 is a visible surface within the cabinof the automotive vehicle. Accordingly, it is desirable that the uppersurface of the tray 18 have pleasing aesthetics. One manner in whichpleasing aesthetics may be provided is to avoid providing sharp cornersand transitions between a floor surface and any end/sidewall surfaces onthe visible side of the tray 18. A softer look can therefore be providedwhen the upper surface of the tray 18 has a generally curved contour atthe transitions between the floor surface and the end/sidewall surfaces.The upper surface of the tray 18, seen in FIGS. 2-4, includes such acurved contour at those transitions. Another way to achieve pleasingaesthetics is through choice of materials defining the visible surfacesof the tray 18. Soft-feel, leather-like materials are thereforedesirable.

However, one problem with soft-feel, leather-like materials, is thatwhen driving the vehicle, a mobile device resting on such a materialwill have the tendency to slide as the vehicle is accelerated,decelerated and/or turned. This problem also exists with harder, lesssoft and luxurious looking materials. To eliminate this movement of themobile device during operation of the vehicle, one could employ amaterial having a greater coefficient of friction, such as rubber orsilicone material. While that would facilitate retention of the mobiledevice, it would lack the pleasing aesthetics that are desired.

The tray 18 of the present console assembly 10 substantially eliminatesinadvertent movement of a mobile device during operation of the vehicleby providing a distinctly defined, anti-slip surface 42, which isgenerally centrally located within upper surface of the tray 18. Theanti-slip surface 42 is a substantially flat surface that readily allowsfor the placement of a mobile device thereon. A mobile phone isillustrated as resting on the anti-slip surface 42 of the tray 18 inboth its closed and retracted positions.

The anti-slip surface 42 is formed of a material that establishes acoefficient of friction that prevents sliding or movement of the mobiledevice thereon when the device is subjected to loading of at least up to+/−4 G during operation of the vehicle. The material for the anti-slipsurface 42 should achieve the above specification even while the tray 18and its anti-slip surface 42 are inclined at an angle of at least up to21.5°. As seen in the figures, the tray 18 of the console assembly 10 isprovided at an inclined angle such that the forward end of the tray 18is raised relative to the rearward end of the tray 18. Thus, the tray 18is inclined upwardly in the forward direction. This upward inclinationserves the purpose of allowing an occupant within the cabin of thevehicle to more readily see the display screen of a mobile deviceresting on the anti-slip surface 42. Since a specific coefficient offriction cannot be established without specifically knowing the materialon the rear surface of the mobile device, the inventors have found thatsuitable material exhibit a surface hardness of up to 70 Shore A.Preferred materials include polyester (base) thermoplastic elastomers,and one preferred embodiment utilizes a polyester (base) thermoplasticelastomer with 59 Shore A hardness. Similar materials achieving theabove mentioned criteria could alternatively be employed.

The anti-slip surface 42 is surrounded about its circumference by abounding surface 44 designed to have enhanced aesthetics. The boundingsurface 44 therefore may be a different material than that of theanti-slip surface 42. Achievement of these enhanced aesthetics mayinclude not only the utilization of a material serving that purpose, butalso the providing of a bounding surface 44 with smoothly curvedcontours, transitioning into upwardly extending end and sidewalls of thetray 18. Regarding the material of this bounding surface, the materialpreferably exhibits a coefficient of friction and Shore A hardness thatis less than that of the anti-slip surface 42.

One inconvenience of relying upon or using a mobile device is that thedevice can and does run out of battery power and becomes inoperative. Inorder to allow for the powered use or charging of the battery of amobile device, the device may be connected by way of a cord (not shown)to one of the previously mentioned connection ports 30. The tray 18 ofthe console assembly 10 incorporates an additional feature that allowsone to forgo the use of a cord to connect and charge the mobile device.

In this regard, the tray 18 has incorporated therein a wireless chargingunit 46. Wireless charging units of various types are known and, assuch, will not be discussed in significant detail herein. One suchwireless charging unit, however, is an inductive charging unit, which isillustrated with the present embodiments. With an inductive chargingunit, a primary coil 47 is coupled to a charging circuit that energizesthe primary coil 47 and results in the formation of an alternatingelectromagnetic field about the primary coil 47. A secondary coil (notshown), and associated circuitry (not shown), is provided in conjunctionwith the mobile device. By placing the mobile device such that thesecondary coil is within the alternating electromagnetic field generatedby the primary coil 47, an inductive coupling is formed between theprimary and secondary coils. The alternating electromagnetic fieldinduces an electrical current in the secondary coil resulting in thecreation of enough electricity for the charging of the mobile device'sbattery, or for even powering some mobile devices. While described inconnection with an inductive charging unit, the tray 18 of the consoleassembly 10 may incorporate other types of wireless charging units.

The wireless charging unit 46 therefore defines a charging spot 48 onthe anti-slip surface 42, which may further be generally identified byindicia 50 provided on the anti-slip surface. In order to facilitate themost efficient wireless charging of the mobile device, the mobile deviceshould be specifically located and registered on the charging spot 42.In the tray 18 of the illustrated embodiment, the charging spot 48 ispurposefully positioned such that it is not centered within the tray 18or the anti-slip surface 42. By offsetting the charging spot 48,additional room is created on the tray 18 and the anti-slip surface 42to allow for other items to be placed thereon during operation of thevehicle, without interfering with the charging of the mobile device orits visibility to the occupant, or without having to partially or fullyoverlay an article on the mobile device. Preferably, the charging spot48 is offset in at least a lateral direction toward the driver's side ofthe vehicle. Depending upon the country for which the vehicle wasmanufactured, this may be toward the left or right side of the vehicle.

In order for the inductive coupling to function optimally, the primaryand secondary coils must be located within a certain proximity of eachother. In other words, they must not be separated by too great of adistance. Once this distance is exceeded, the efficiency of theinductive coupling rapidly diminishes. Standards for inductive couplingspecify that the distance between the coils be 2 mm, with variances of−0.25 mm and +0.5 mm.

As previously noted, the anti-slip surface 42 is encompassed by abounding surface 44 that exhibits a curved transition into the end andsidewalls 24, 26 of the tray 18. Should a mobile device that ispositioned over the charging spot be misaligned, it is possible that anend or corner of the mobile device may contact and reside on the curvedtransition of the bounding surface 44. This would in turn raise andelevate the lower or back side of the mobile device up off of theanti-slip surface 42. Depending upon the degree to which the mobiledevice is elevated, it is possible the the secondary coil will be raisedto a height where optimal coupling with the primary coil is no longerachieved, or even where no charging will occur.

To minimize the possibility of the above situation occurring, theanti-slip surface 42 is provided such its substantially flat top surfaceexhibits a raised height relative to the immediately adjacent portionsof the bounding surface 44. The raised height of the anti-slip surface42, relative to the immediately adjacent portions of the boundingsurface 44, can be seen in FIGS. 2-4, 6 and 7. With the anti-slipsurface 42 being raised in this manner, the mobile device can bemisaligned relative to the charging spot 48 and even extend off of theanti-slip surface 42, to a certain degree, without resulting an end orcorner of the device coming into contact with the upward transition ofthe bounding surface 44. As particularly seen in FIGS. 6 and 7, a mobiledevice 45 overhangs and extends off (generally designated at 43) of theanti-slip surface 42 some distance without contacting the boundingsurface 44. If the anti-slip surface 42 and the immediately adjacentportions of the bounding surface 44 were of the same height, the degreeto which the mobile device 45 could be misaligned with the charging spot48 before affecting the charging capabilities of the would besignificantly lessened.

As a person skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the abovedescription is meant as an illustration of implementation of theprinciples this invention. This description is not intended to limit thescope or application of this invention in that the invention issusceptible to modification, variation and change, without departingfrom spirit of this invention, as defined in the following claims.

I/We claim:
 1. An assembly for an automotive vehicle and for wirelesslycharging a mobile device, the assembly comprising: a storage compartmentincluding a tray, a storage area, and an opening, the storage areadefined by a floor, a pair of sidewalls, and a pair of end walls,wherein the opening permits access in the storage area, the tray isoperable to be slid between a covered position and a retracted positionrelative to the opening, wherein in the covered position the tray coversthe opening and in the retracted position the opening is exposed topermit access into the storage area through the opening; and a wirelesscharging unit incorporated into and movable with the tray, whereby themobile device is charged when placed on the tray.
 2. The assembly ofclaim 1, further comprising an anti-slip surface provided on the trayand configured to receive the mobile device thereon, wherein thewireless charging unit is located below the anti-slip surface.
 3. Theassembly of claim 2, wherein the anti-slip surface is formed from amaterial having a surface hardness of less than or equal to 70 Shore A.4. The assembly of claim 2, wherein when the mobile device is placed onthe anti-slip surface, the anti-slip surface prevents sliding ormovement of the mobile device when the mobile device is subjected toloading of up to +/−4G during operation of the automotive vehicle whenthe tray and the anti-slip surface are inclined at an angle of up to21.5°.
 5. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the tray further comprises abounding surface that surrounds the anti-slip surface.
 6. The assemblyof claim 5, wherein the bounding surface and the anti-slip surface areformed from different materials, and wherein a material of the boundingsurface has a Shore A hardness that is less than a Shore A hardness ofthe material of the anti-slip surface.
 7. The assembly of claim 6,wherein the tray further comprises upwardly extending end and sidewalls,wherein the bounding surface comprises curved contours transitioninginto the upwardly extending end and sidewalls.
 8. The assembly of claim1, wherein the tray is provided at an inclined angle such that a forwardend of the tray is raised relative to a rearward end of the tray.